Trauma – PTSD

Question:

<snip : Can’t begin to : express my elation & joy – *two* purring yellowcats on my lap!!!!  A small : victory over his fears, but one I’m really proud of.  A toast, please, to brave : Noely Cowardy Cat! Congratulations! Purrs to all from Shmoggleberry and myself. Vicky — — Remove the obvious to e-mail me. See pictures of Shmoggleberry at http://www.onthe.net.au/~flippy/vicky.html While you’re there, read the stories, jokes & anecdotes about cats on Flippy’s great site http://www.onthe.net.au/~flippy/index.html . My stories are there too. Thanks for letting me use your page, Flippy! —

Response:

I remember this.  I thought it was so neat that Mama cat shoved her baby into the house for a decent meal. A toast to you for caring enough to take the time for these two kitties. Now the question is: Will you ever be able to read a book without a lap and leg warmer again?  My friends know to let the phone ring because it takes a while to move the cats.  LOL! Again, congratulations! Hazel Az

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Hi, some of you might remember that I posted a while back about Liam & Noel, the two feral kittens whose Mom helped me coerce them into my house.  (The whole litter was yellow in color, so are Momcat & Dadcat, so the neighborhood here in the Deep South has always referred to them as the "Yallercats" or "Yellowcats" depending on your accent <g.)  The rest of the litter found good homes but whoever owns Momcat seems to have chucked my two kittens out on their respective ears, or abused them until they voluntarily left.  :-(  Anyway, my dear departed cat Trinket was the one who found these two starving little yellowkittens & brought them home for a decent meal. It’s been a year and a half since I first started feeding them, and four months since poor little scared Noely-cat first got shoved into my kitchen by Momcat. Liam, the larger of the two, has taken to being indoor/outdoor like the proverbial duck to water – in fact he’s snoozing on my lap as I type <g, but Noel *really* seems to be affected by post-traumatic stress disorder or something.  It’s really been "one step forward, two steps back" in the process of getting him to trust me.  Sometimes I do things that scare him without intending to, and other times I have no *clue* what I did that sent him back to cowering under the bed for days on end!   And it’s not just me he’s scared of – he seems to have days when the entire *planet* scares him, and he’ll come running into the house and hide under the bed for a whole day.  But I’ve tried to be as patient & kind as possible, approaching him when he seems in an approachable mood, and staying away at other times, and trying simply to be calm, quiet, consistent & loving in my behavior toward him. We’ve made, really, a lot of progress in the last couple of months – he’ll let me pick him up sometimes, and will purr when I pet him sometimes, and a nice small moment a month or so ago was when he voluntarily curled up next to my feet one night when I was sitting on the couch (not for very long, however – he lost his nerve after about 10 mins). But the coolest thing happened last night that I hope you don’t mind if I share.  I stretched out on the couch with a book, as I like to do on rainy nights, and lo and behold, up came *both* yellowcats, and settled on my tummy & legs (respectively) for a snuggle!   It may be silly, but I was just SO thrilled.  I petted Noel gently & told him what a good boy he was, and he purred, and ended up staying on my lap for 3 whole hours.  It’s the first time he’s ever sat on my lap for more than about 3 seconds, and it’s something I’ve prayed for ever since I first laid eyes on the yellowcats.  Can’t begin to express my elation & joy – *two* purring yellowcats on my lap!!!!  A small victory over his fears, but one I’m really proud of.  A toast, please, to brave Noely Cowardy Cat! Cheers, Liz

Response:

Wonderful.  My gray cats send their love to the Yellowcats.

Response:

Hi, some of you might remember that I posted a while back about Liam & Noel, the two feral kittens whose Mom helped me coerce them into my house.  (The whole litter was yellow in color, so are Momcat & Dadcat, so the neighborhood here in the Deep South has always referred to them as the "Yallercats" or "Yellowcats" depending on your accent <g.)  The rest of the litter found good

YAY! I was just wondering the other day how the yellow cats were doing. I’m glad that Noel is doing so well. Give them a hug for me! Love, Nae

Response:

*Snip* buildup to great ending! – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – But the coolest thing happened last night that I hope you don’t mind if I share.  I stretched out on the couch with a book, as I like to do on rainy nights, and lo and behold, up came *both* yellowcats, and settled on my tummy & legs (respectively) for a snuggle!   It may be silly, but I was just SO thrilled.  I petted Noel gently & told him what a good boy he was, and he purred, and ended up staying on my lap for 3 whole hours.  It’s the first time he’s ever sat on my lap for more than about 3 seconds, and it’s something I’ve prayed for ever since I first laid eyes on the yellowcats.  Can’t begin to express my elation & joy – *two* purring yellowcats on my lap!!!!  A small victory over his fears, but one I’m really proud of.  A toast, please, to brave Noely Cowardy Cat! Cheers, Liz

This post made my day! Cheers to Noel, and three cheers for you! Regards, Shel. Remove spam trap from addy :-

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